


Dating and Other Disasters

by nevermore913



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-23
Updated: 2015-04-23
Packaged: 2018-03-25 10:07:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3806443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nevermore913/pseuds/nevermore913
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mr. Gold is known for always getting the better end of his deals but Belle French may have just outsmarted him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dating and Other Disasters

**Author's Note:**

> This is the very first piece of fanfiction I've ever written. Any comments/suggestions would be very much appreciated.  
> It hasn't been betaed. Any and all mistakes are mine.  
> Read on! :)

He had been tricked.

Mr. Gold, pawnbroker, antiquities dealer and ruthless dealmaker, had been tricked by a slip of a girl. That was why he was currently sitting at a secluded booth in the back of Granny’s Diner and instead of having dinner with the blue-eyed beauty, he was having dinner with her father.

When he went to the flower shop that morning he had no intention asking the girl out. He would take the rent and leave; except they couldn’t pay for it, as it seemed, so he graciously decided to strike a deal with her. He meant her no harm, really. He was perfectly used to admiring her from afar; watching her go by in her short skirts, carrying sunshine wherever she went, trying to eat her lunch while stubbornly not putting her book down. He knew it was all he would ever get and he was fine with it. He really didn’t know what got into him when he proposed his deal. Belle was rambling on and on about how they had had a difficult month, Mr. Gold and they just needed a little more time, Mr. Gold and they would definitely find the money, Mr. Gold.

“That’s quite enough, Miss French. You know, when one person has something the other wants, a deal can always be struck.”

“Oh. I see. And what do you want Mr. Gold?”

“Dinner.”

“Pardon?”

“I will give you an extension for this month’s rent, interest-free, for a dinner date.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

Belle studied him for a long time probably trying to decide if a reprieve for her father’s debts was worth it to spend time with the town’s monster. He didn’t want to force her into anything, God no. She would say no and he would accept her answer most cordially, say goodbye and leave. He would even give them the extension as a thank you to Belle for not slapping him after he made his indecent proposal.

She finally seemed to reach an answer and said “All right then”, smiling widely.

“Really?”

He must not have heard her right. Surely, she wouldn’t agree so easily.

“Yes! Tonight. Granny’s. 8 o’clock. Don’t be late.”

“I won’t. Well, um… I’ll see you tonight then. Have a nice day.”

“You too, Mr. Gold.” She said smiling that smile again.

He returned to the pawnshop right after collecting the rent from the rest of his tenants. It was time for lunch but he doubted he could eat anything. He had a date tonight. Well, not technically a date since he had acted like the old, lecherous man that he was and Belle had had no choice but go out with him. But still… He would be a perfect gentleman and he’d show her a good time. Maybe by the end of the night, she would have forgiven him for his indiscretion. He would have liked to take her somewhere nice, a proper restaurant out of town with first and second courses, soft music and candles but Belle wanted to go at Granny’s. And what Belle wanted, Belle would have.

He contemplated buying her flowers but quickly shot down the idea after remembering theirs was the only flower shop in town. He would either find her at the shop and be forced to buy from her the flowers he would later give her, resulting in a rather awkward situation, or he would find her father, whom he had no desire speaking to.

He spent the rest of the day in a haze. Torn between crippling anxiety and hopeful daydreaming about his date with Belle, he finally gave up pretending to work when the clock struck six. He discarded the jewellery he had been working on, closed up shop and made his way home in his Cadillac.

He would never admit it to anyone but the amount of time he spent in front of the mirror was ridiculous. He was acting some teenage boy on his first night out with the girl he fancied. Which was partially true.

With a sigh, he reviewed his attire in the mirror once more. He wasn’t that bad. Was he? No. He wasn’t. For a man his age. And with a limp. And with a disastrous history of romantic relationships which resulted in a fair amount of self-loathing and self-doubt. He could play the monster all he wanted in front of his various tenants but he would be reduced to a puddle of goo for some chestnut curls and a pair of blue eyes and that was the truth.

He didn’t stand a chance.

He could see two possible outcomes playing out tonight. He would stress and worry and be on the defensive and finally drive her away before he even got a chance with her or he would turn into an actual and literal puppy in front of her, begging for her attentions. He honestly didn’t know which was worse.

At last, he gave up trying to change his looks through sheer force of mind and made his way downstairs. He put on his coat, grabbed his keys and praying to whatever sort of deity cared to listen, he went out.

The drive was short and only when he parked outside Granny’s did he realise he was half an hour early. Should he go in? No, no. He would look pathetic sitting there all alone for thirty minutes until Belle arrived. And what if she didn’t? What if she changed her mind? Oh God. No. Better stay in the car and get out only when Belle arrived. He would greet her and make a comment about just getting there himself and they would enter Granny’s together. And if she didn’t show up… well, he would just drive away and no harm, no foul. But wouldn’t it seem weird staying all that time in his car? What if someone saw him? He really had no excuse for sitting in his Cadillac, parked outside of Granny’s while he could be in. Well, he would go in then. He’d sit down, order a glass of wine and wait for Belle. And if she didn’t show up, he could just leave and none would be the wiser. Nobody would know he’d just been stood up by the most beautiful woman he’d ever met.

Thirty-five minutes, a glass of wine and several lethal looks pointed at the various patrons of Granny’s diner who dared to look suspiciously at him, he heard the bells on the door jingle. He looked up expecting to see the beauty arrive, when his eyes met… her father. Well, this was awkward. What was he doing here? Didn’t Belle tell him she had a date? Well, no of course she didn’t. She wasn’t a child and besides he doubted Belle would want her father to know she’d be having dinner with an old cripple like him. He was about to pay and leave so he could catch Belle before she got here and take her some place else when Moe French approached him and with a half-muttered hello sat down across from him.

“Not late, am I?”

What?

“Had to close up the shop and review the accounts and then I had to shower”, he said and gave an awkward little laugh.

Mr. Gold was staring at Moe French like he was seeing a ghost. He hadn’t even said a word to him. What could he say, really, when he didn’t know what was happening?

The waitress arrived then and Mr. French ordered a chicken sandwich with fries, while Mr. Gold mumbled something about ordering later.

They spent a few more moments in awkward silence until Moe French finally said “I suppose I should thank you.”

“For the extension on our rent”, he explained when Mr. Gold just looked at him, quizzically.

“When Belle told me you’d agreed I was sure it was some kind of trick. I said to her ‘Belle, we can’t trust him; he’s a monster.’ No offense. ‘What makes you think he’s really going to help us?’ And she said ‘Don’t worry, papa. We made a deal and everyone knows Mr. Gold never breaks his deals.”

The waitress appeared at that moment putting Mr. French’s order in front of him while Mr. Gold distractedly ordered the lasagna.

“So here I am, then. Belle always had a huge heart, you know. She can’t stand to see people unhappy, she always wants to help. And then she said you were lonely and just wanted to have dinner with a friend and in exchange you’d help us out-” 

Ah. There it was then. He’d been so absorbed in getting a date with Belle, he failed to notice that she never said she would actually go to dinner with him.

“I thought ‘this can’t be right. Mr. Gold doesn’t-”

But Mr. Gold wasn’t listening anymore.

He had been tricked.

**Author's Note:**

> Well, there it is.
> 
> I have a vague idea of where this could go from here so if people are interested, I might write a follow-up.
> 
> Thank you for reading!


End file.
